Method and apparatus for mitigating interference in a wireless communication system

ABSTRACT

A process, device and computer-readable storage medium that incorporate teachings of the subject disclosure may include, for example, providing a first instruction to mobile user equipment to cause the mobile user equipment to perform a first channel quality assessment of a non-reduced power subframe of a wireless signal comprising the non-reduced power subframe, an almost blank subframe and a reduced power subframe. A second instruction is provided to the mobile user equipment to cause the mobile user equipment to perform a second channel quality assessment of the almost blank subframe. A determination is made as to whether the mobile user equipment is performing instantaneous channel quality measurements based on a result of the first channel quality assessment and a result of the second channel quality assessment. Other embodiments are disclosed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of and claims priority to U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/617,191, filed Feb. 9, 2015, which is aContinuation of and claims priority to Ser. No. 13/713,856, filed Dec.13, 2012. The contents of each of the foregoing are hereby incorporatedby reference into this application as if set forth herein in full.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The subject disclosure relates generally to method and apparatus formitigating interference in a wireless communication system.

BACKGROUND

Heterogeneous networks include a relatively low-power base transceiverterminal or station, sometimes referred to as a “pico” or “femto” celllocated within a wireless communications coverage footprint of arelatively high-power base transceiver station. The relativelyhigh-power base transceiver station is sometimes referred to as a“macro” cell and can poses interference to mobile communications devicesin communication with the base transceiver station of the relativelylow-power or pico cell. For example, reception of downlinkcommunications from a base transceiver station of a pico cell to amobile communications device positioned with a region of overlappingwireless coverage between the macro cell and the pico cell, might beinterfered with by downlinks from the macro cell to other mobilecommunications devices. Such unwanted interference might render the picocell unusable within certain regions, for example, reducing an effectivefootprint of the pico cell. Another consequence includes a reduction inoperational bandwidth resulting from a reduced signal to noise andinterference ratio. The signal refers to a downlink from pico cell;whereas, noise and interference includes other downlinks and controlsignals from macro cell.

In order to improve the performance for mobile communication devicesconnected to such low power cells overlapped by macro cells, the macrocell can be operated to essentially stop transmitting during certainperiods of time, e.g., certain subframes of a frame. Release 10 of thethird-generation partnership project (“3GPP”), long term evolution(“LTE”) standard provides a feature to reduce the likelihood of suchinterference, referred to as enhanced inter-cell interferencecoordination (“eICIC”). The standard specifies a limited number ofalmost blank subframes within each downlink communication frame, duringwhich the macro cell base transceiver station only transmits a verylimited amount of information, such as control information as may benecessary to maintain communications. The micro or femto cell isconfigured to coordinate downlink information to mobile communicationsdevices during such almost blank subframes.

Mobile communications devices typically provide a base transceiverstation of a cell with some measure of a wireless channel state,sometimes referred to as a channel assessment in the form of a channelquality indicator. The base transceiver station, for example, can usesuch channel quality indicators to establish a preferred communicationsrate, such as a maximum channel bit rate, by which the mobilecommunications device can communicate with the base transceiver stationof the cell. For enhanced inter-cell interference coordination,communications devices compliant with release 10 of the 3GPP LTEstandard are configured to perform channel state assessments and providechannel quality indicators with respect the almost blank subframes, thenon-almost blank subframes, or both.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are notnecessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communications systemproviding enhanced interference coordination for an overlaid deploymentof cells;

FIG. 2A depicts an illustrative embodiment of a subframe sequence usedwithin portions of the systems described in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 3-7;

FIG. 2B depicts an illustrative embodiment of a downlink subframe withexamples of mobile device channel quality assessment and reporting usedwithin portions of the systems described in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 3-7;

FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a base transceiver stationof the communications system of FIG. 1 and FIGS. 5-7;

FIGS. 4A-4B depict illustrative embodiments of processes operating inportions of the system described in FIGS. 1 and 3, and FIGS. 5-7;

FIGS. 5-6 depict illustrative embodiments of communication systems thatprovide media services;

FIG. 7 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a web portal forinteracting with the communication systems of FIGS. 1 and 3, and FIGS.5-6;

FIG. 8 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a mobile communicationdevice; and

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the form of acomputer system within which a set of instructions, when executed, maycause the machine to perform any one or more of the methods describedherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The subject disclosure describes, among other things, illustrativeembodiments of identifying a mobile communications device that is unableto distinguish between a non-reduced power subframe and a reduced-powersubframe of a communications protocol including a pre-definedarrangement of non-reduced power and reduced-power subframes. Thecommunication protocol is configured to provide enhanced inter-cellinterference coordination by providing reduced-power subframes for useby a communication terminal subject to inference by anothercommunication terminal.

Some mobile communications devices are not configured to discriminatebetween relatively low-power subframes and relatively high-powersubframes of a communications protocol providing a pre-determinedarrangement of relatively low-power subframes and relatively high-powersubframes. An example of such devices are referred to as legacy devices,for example, operating according to release 8 of the 3GPP LTEcommunications protocol. Unfortunately, such devices are unable todiscriminate between the relatively high and low power, or non-reducedpower and reduced-power subframes. Accordingly, without the techniquesdisclosed herein, such wireless communications devices are unable tocapitalize on the performance benefits offered by the enhancedinter-cell interference coordination, even if the base transceiverstations of the overlapping cells provide a predetermined arrangement ofrelatively low-power and high-power subframes, as in release 10 of the3GPP LTE communications protocol.

Even if it were possible to somehow coordinate performance of a channelstate assessment on the relatively low-power subframes, there would beno assurance as to whether the assessment would be representative of therelatively low-power subframes, or some combination of relativelylow-power and high-power subframes. This situation results from a lackof specificity within the 3GPP LTE standard with regard to a manner inwhich the mobile communications device performs measurements in supportof channel quality assessments. Namely, the standard does not specifywhether the mobile communications devices should determine such channelstate assessments with measurements within a single subframe, e.g.,instantaneously, or as an average over multiple measurements made overdifferent subframes.

The techniques disclosed herein include sending first and secondinstructions to an identified mobile communications device. Theinstructions cause the mobile communications device to perform a firstchannel quality assessment of a non-reduced power (e.g., a standard, ornon-almost blank) subframe and a second channel quality assessment of areduced-power (e.g., almost blank) subframe. The first and secondinstructions also respectively identify the non-reduced power and thereduced-power subframes within which the first and second channelquality assessments are to be performed. After receiving the first andsecond channel quality assessments, it is determined whether the channelquality assessments performed by the mobile communications deviceincludes instantaneous or average measurements. Other embodiments areincluded in the subject disclosure.

One embodiment of the subject disclosure includes a process, whichincludes identifying, by a system including a processor, mobile userequipment that is unable to distinguish between non-reduced power andalmost blank subframes of a third-generation partnership project(“3GPP”), long term evolution (“LTE”) communications protocol. Thecommunications protocol includes a frame having a pre-definedarrangement of a number of non-reduced power subframes and a number ofalmost blank subframes, wherein the almost blank subframes arecharacterized by a reduced downlink transmission power. A firstinstruction is sent by the system to the mobile user equipment. Thefirst instruction causes the mobile user equipment to perform a firstchannel quality assessment of a non-reduced power subframe of the numberof non-reduced power subframes. The first instruction identifies thenon-reduced power subframe within which the first channel qualityassessment is to be performed. A second instruction is also sent by thesystem to the mobile user equipment. The second instruction causes themobile user equipment to perform a second channel quality assessment ofan almost blank subframe of the number of almost blank subframes. Thesecond instruction identifies the almost blank subframe within which thesecond channel quality assessment is to be performed. The first channelquality assessment and the second channel quality assessment arereceived by the system. Whether the mobile user equipment is performinginstantaneous measurements of channel quality assessments is determinedby the system based on the first channel quality assessment and thesecond channel quality assessment.

Another embodiment of the subject disclosure includes a device having acomputer readable medium having instructions stored thereon and aprocessor. The processor, responsive to executing the instructions,performs operations including identifying a mobile communications devicethat is unable to distinguish between a non-reduced power subframe and areduced-power subframe of a communications protocol including a framehaving a pre-defined arrangement of a number of non-reduced powersubframes and a number of reduced-power subframes. A first instructionis sent to the mobile communications device to cause the mobilecommunications device to perform a first channel quality assessment of anon-reduced power subframe of the number of non-reduced power subframes.A second instruction is also sent to the mobile communications device tocause the mobile communications device to perform a second channelquality assessment of a reduced-power subframe of the number ofreduced-power subframes. The first channel quality assessment and thesecond channel quality assessment are received. Whether the mobilecommunications device is performing instantaneous measurements ofchannel quality assessments is determined based on the first channelquality assessment and the second channel quality assessment.

Yet another embodiment of the subject disclosure includes acomputer-readable storage medium including computer instructions. Thecomputer instructions, responsive to being executed by a processor,cause the processor to perform operations. The operations includeidentifying a wireless device that is unable to distinguish between anon-reduced power subframe and a reduced-power subframe of acommunications protocol including a frame having a pre-definedarrangement of a number of non-reduced power subframes and a number ofreduced-power subframes. A first instruction is sent to the wirelessdevice to cause the wireless device to perform a first channel qualityassessment of a non-reduced power subframe of the number of non-reducedpower subframes. A second instruction is sent to the wireless device tocause the wireless device to perform a second channel quality assessmentof a reduced-power subframe of the number of reduced-power subframes.The first channel quality assessment and the second channel qualityassessment are received. Whether the wireless device is performinginstantaneous measurements of channel quality assessments is determinedbased on the first channel quality assessment and the second channelquality assessment.

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communications system 100providing enhanced interference coordination for an overlaid deploymentof wireless communications regions, or cells. The system 100 includes arelatively high-powered wireless communications cell, sometimes referredto as an aggressor, shown as a macro cell 102. The macro cell 102includes a macro base transceiver station 104 coupled to a first antenna105. The macro base transceiver station 104 by way of the first antenna105 provides geographic coverage approximated by the limits of the macrocell 102. Without restriction, macro cells 102 can include the coveragecells of wireless radio cellular network and without limitation can bemeasured on a scale of more or less than one to several squarekilometers.

A first mobile communications device 110 (UE₁) positioned within themacro cell 102 is communicatively coupled, e.g., attached, to the basetransceiver station 104. Communications directed from the basetransceiver 104 station to a first mobile communications device 110 canbe referred to as downlink communications; whereas, communicationsdirected from the mobile communications device 110 to the basetransceiver station 104 can be referred to as uplink communications.

The communications system 100 also includes a relatively low-poweredwireless communications cell, referred to herein as a pico or femto cell106. The relatively small cell 106 respectively includes a relativelylow-power base transceiver station 108 coupled to a second antenna 109.The relatively low-power, or pico base transceiver station 108 providesgeographic coverage approximated by the limits of the pico cell 106. Itis understood that the particular shape, relative size and location ofthe antennas 105, 109 with respect to the cells 102, 106 are providedfor illustrative purposes and can vary substantially in differentapplications. In particular, it is also understood that any coverageregion, such as the example macro cell 102 can include one or more areaswithin which reliable coverage is unavailable. Such regions can bereferred to as “holes” or “blind spots” and may result from buildings,or geographical features, such as hills, valleys, etc. Such holes serveas examples of at least one motivation for providing overlappingcoverage. For example, the pico cell 106 overlapping a portion of themacro cell 102 can provide more reliable coverage for the overlappingregion 106 than would otherwise be available by the macro cell 102 ifthe macro cell 102 were subject to a hole or blind spot within avicinity of the overlapping region 106.

Other motivations for providing overlapping coverage, particularly withrespect to smaller coverage footprints, is an ability to offload datatraffic from a macro cell 102 to one or more pico and femto cells 106.Pico cells 106, for example, can include the coverage provided bywireless access points and without restriction can be measure on a scaleof more or less than tens to hundreds of square meters.

A second mobile communications device 112 (UE₂) positioned within anoverlapping region of the pico cell 106 and the macro cell 102 iscommunicatively coupled, e.g., attached, to the pico base transceiverstation 108. A third mobile communications device 114 (UE₃) is alsoshown positioned within the overlapping region of the pico cell 106 andthe macro cell 102 is communicatively coupled, e.g., attached, to themacro base transceiver station 104.

Each of the first, second and third mobile communications devices 110,112, 114 can communicate with a respective one of the macro basetransceiver station 104 and the pico base transceiver station 108through a communications protocol. Communications protocols can includedefinitions of wireless communications frames, for example, including anumber of subframes. An example of a macro cell radio frame 200 a and apico cell radio frame 200 b, each providing a sequence of subframes isdepicted in the illustration of FIG. 2A. The macro and pico cell radioframes 200 a, 200 b (generally 200) can include some number of subframes201, for example ten subframes 201, each including one or more slots202. The illustrative example includes two slots 202 are provided withineach of ten subframes 201. Information provided within the slots 202 ofthe subframes can include one or more of data, control and signalinginformation. The 3GPP LTE protocol provides on such example of a radioframe 200 with an overall length of 10 milliseconds. The 3GPP LTE radioframe 200 can include ten subframes, each having a respective length ofabout 1 millisecond, and each including two slots having respectivelengths of about 0.5 milliseconds. The example slots 202 are referencelabeled from 0 to 19.

Such radio communications frames 200 can represent downlinkcommunications radio frames 200 broadcast by each of the macro basetransceiver station 104 and the pico base transceiver station 108. Thebase transceiver stations 104, 108 can communicate with one or moremobile communications devices, such as the three communications devices110, 112, 114 of the illustrative example. Thus, it is advantageous forthe base transceiver stations 104, 108 to identify one or moreparticular subframes 201 or slots 202 as being associated with arespective one of the mobile communications devices 110, 112, 114. Othersubframes 201 or slots 202 can be used for monitoring and controlpurposes, for example, establishing a new call, performing a handoff ofan existing call between cells 102, 106, and the like.

There is a possibility that any of the mobile communications devices110, 112, 114 attached to one of the overlapping cells 102, 106 willexperience interference from downlink frames of the other one of theoverlapping cells 102. 106. For example, the second mobilecommunications device 112 attached to the pico cell 106 may perceivedownlink signals broadcast from the macro cell 102 as interference. Inthis scenario, the macro cell 102 can be referred to as an aggressor,while the pico cell 106 is referred as a victim. If the second mobilecommunications device is relatively close to the pico base transceiverstation 108, any interference from the macro cell 102 may not precludesuccessful attachment of the second mobile communications device 112 tothe pico cell 106. However, should the second mobile communicationsdevice 112 be located farther away from the pico base transceiverstation 108, interference from the macro cell 102 might result in a backoff or similar adjustment of data rate to maintain reliablecommunications.

In the illustrative example, a second subframe 206 (i.e., slots 2 and 3)of the macro-cell radio frame 200 a provides downlink service from macrocell 102 to the first mobile communications device 110. A third subframe204′ (i.e., slots 4 and 5) of the pico-cell radio frame 200 b providesdownlink service from pico base transceiver station 108 to the secondmobile communications device 112. According to a communicationsprotocol, the macro base transceiver station 104 provides correspondingalmost blank subframe 210′ during the third subframe, i.e., slots 4 and5 of the macro-cell radio frame 200 a, so as not to interfere with thedownlink from the pico base transceiver station 108. Likewise, an eighthsubframe 204″ (i.e., slots 14 and 15 of the pico-cell radio frame 200 b)provides downlink service from pico base transceiver station 108 to thesecond mobile communications device 112. According to the communicationsprotocol, the macro-cell radio frame 200 a provides corresponding almostblank subframe 210″, i.e., slots 14 and 5 of the macro-cell radio frame200 a, so as not to interfere with the downlink from the pico basetransceiver station 108. A final subframe 208 of the macro-cell radioframe 200 a (i.e., slots 18 and 19) provides downlink service from macrobase transceiver station 104 to the third mobile communications device114.

Referring once again to FIG. 1, in at least some embodiments, the macrobase transceiver station 104 and the pico base transceiver station 108are communicatively coupled by another means, referred to herein as abackhaul network 120. The backhaul network 120 can include one or moredifferent modes of communications including wired, wireless, optical,and the like. Backhaul networks 120 can be controlled by a mobilecellular service provider and used in coordinating operating a mobilecellular network providing wireless communications service over one ormore geographic regions. In the illustrative example, the backhaulnetwork 120 can allow the macro base transceiver station 104 tocommunication with the pico base transceiver station 108 to coordinatewireless service to one or more of the mobile communications devices110, 112, 114. Such backhaul communications can be helpful incoordinating a handoff from one base transceiver satiation, e.g., fromthe macro base transceiver station 104 to the pico base transceiverstation 108, and visa versa.

In the illustrative example, wireless communication service can beprovided by the macro base transceiver station 104 to the first mobilecommunications device 110 without regard for the pico cell 106, as thefirst mobile communications device 110 is not located within a region ofoverlapping coverage 106. Wireless communications service can beprovided by the pico base transceiver station 108 to the second mobilecommunications device 112, which happens to be located within a regionof overlapping coverage served by the pico cell 106. Since the secondmobile or wireless communications device 112 falls within overlappingcoverage region 106, it may receive communications from the macro basetransceiver station 104 as well as from the pico base transceiverstation 108. When communicating with or otherwise “attached to” the picocell 106, any communications from the macro cell 102 would generallyrepresent interference, particularly if they occurred during periodswhen the second mobile communications device 112 is receivinginformation from the pico cell 106 by way of downlink communications.This can be referred to as a so called macro-pico interference scenario.It should be understood that such interference is not restricted tomacro cells 102 or pico cells 106.

It is also conceivable that a mobile communications device, such as thethird mobile communications device 114 located within a region ofoverlapping coverage of the pico cell 106 located at least partiallywithin the macro cell 102 may nevertheless be configured forcommunications with the relatively high-power macro cell 102. Examplesof scenarios when this might occur include a pico or femto cell 106providing restricted service, for example, only to those wirelessservice subscribers also subscribed or are otherwise authorized foraccess to the femto cell 106. Such closed networks might exist, forexample, within an office or academic environment in which access islimited to employees or students and otherwise not available forvisitors.

When communicating with the macro cell 102, any communications from thefemto cell 106 would generally represent interference, particularly ifthey occurred during periods when the third mobile communications device114 is receiving information from the macro cell 102 by way of downlinkcommunications. This can be referred to as a so called femto-macrointerference scenario, although it is not restricted to femto cells 106or macro cells 102. The techniques disclosed herein can be appliedwithout restriction to either scenario.

It would be possible through provisions of a communications protocol formacro-pico interference at the second mobile communications device 112to be alleviated or otherwise avoided. For example, release 10 of the3GPP LTE communications protocol provides features referred to asenhanced inter-cell interference coordination. This features of theprotocol reserve some number of the subframes 201 of a radio frame 200during which the base transceiver station 104 transmits little or nopower. These frames are referred to as almost blank frames and includeminimum downlink communications by the interfering base transceiverstation as may be necessary for maintaining proper control of thewireless network. Otherwise, the almost blank subframes provideregularly scheduled periods of reduced power operations in a radio frame200 during which interference would be reduced.

Mobile communications devices operating under such a release 10 protocolare also generally aware of the existence of the almost blank subframes,when available, and can work together with a base transceiver station ina region of overlapping coverage to perform channel quality assessmentsand to receive downlink communications during almost blank subframeswithin radio frames broadcast by an interfering base transceiverstation. In the macro-pico scenario, the second mobile communicationsdevice would be scheduled by the pico base transceiver station 108 toreceive downlink communications by way of radio frames from the picobase transceiver station 108 during almost blank subframes provided in acorresponding downlink from the macro base transceiver station 104. Thiswould allow the mobile communications device to experience an improvedchannel quality, for example, by way of an increased ratio of signal tonoise and interference. The increased signal to noise and interferencegenerally results from a reduction in the level of interference 116 thatwould otherwise be experienced by downlink communications from the macrocell 102, for example, to other mobile communications devices 110, 114without the benefit of almost blank subframes. By also obtaining achannel assessment, or channel state, by the mobile communicationsdevice 112 during the almost blank frames and reporting the channelstate to the pico base transceiver station 108, the base transceiverstation 108 is able to select an greater downlink communications ratethan would otherwise be available in the absence of the almost blanksubframes.

FIG. 2B illustrates an example of a portion of a sequence of macro cellradio frames 220 a, 220 b, 220 c (generally 220). The illustrative frame220 includes ten subframes 221, 223. The frame 220 defines a start offrame 224 at the beginning of subframe “0,” occurring at a time to. Eachsubframe 221, 223 in the illustrative example is 1 msec in length. Areference timeline is illustrated at the bottom of FIG. 2B.

In the illustrative example, two subframes 223 of each frame 220 areshaded: a first subframe “2,” a second subframe “7.” The resultingperiodic pattern of shaded subframes 223, e.g., every 5^(th) subframe,repeats in each frame 220. It is understood that in some embodiments, arepeating periodic pattern can extend over a group of frames, e.g.,across 4 frames, for a total of 40 subframes. The shaded subframes 223represent relatively low power subframes, sometimes referred to asreduced-power subframes, or almost blank subframes. The remainingsubframes 221 of each frame 220 represent sets of non-reduced power, ornon-almost blank subframes, or unrestricted subframes.

In some embodiments, a mobile communications device can be directed toselectively perform channel quality assessments on reduced powersubframes 223. A first periodic measurement scenario 230 is illustratedin which the mobile communications device performs measurements on thereduced-power subframes 223. Namely, a first measurement M1 is madewithin slot “7” of a first frame 220 a. Likewise, second and thirdmeasurements M2, M3 are made within subframes “2” and “7” a second radioframe 220 b, fourth and fifth measurements M4, M5 are made withinsubframes “2” and “7” a third radio frame 220 c, and so on. Themeasurements are periodic in that they each measurement is separated bya constant offset of 5 msec, or 5 slots.

Each measurement is reported on a different offset of subframes from themeasurement subframe by a measurement offset value of M_(Offset), offour subframes, or 4 msec. Thus, measurements R1 and R2 are reported atsubframes “1” and “6” of the second frame 220 b, measurements R3 and R4are reported at subframes “1” and “6” of the third frame 220 c, and soon. A mobile communications device can be instructed or otherwiseadapted to make such periodic measurements by providing one or more ofthe measurement offset M_(Offset), the measurement period M_(Period) andthe reporting period R_(Period), of 5 slots, or 2.5 msec.

In some embodiments, the mobile communications device can be directed toselectively perform channel quality assessments on reduced powersubframes 223, by identifying a periodicity of reporting subframesR_(Period), and a reporting offset of a first reporting frame from areference R_(Offset) along with the measurement offset M_(Offset)between respective measurement and reporting subframes. For situationsin which a base transceiver station is aware of the locations of reducedpower subframes 223, the base transceiver station can choose anappropriate periodicity of reporting subframes R_(Period), and reportingoffset R_(Offset) such that the corresponding periodic measurementsubframes being reported by the reporting subframes coincide withreduced power subframes 223. A similar approach can be used to directthe mobile communications device to perform measurements on non-reducedpower subframes 221.

In some embodiments, a mobile communications device can be directed toperform channel quality assessments on non-reduced power subframes. Asecond periodic measurement scenario 250 is illustrated that makesmeasurements on the non-reduced-power subframes. In the illustrativeexample, a communications device performs measurements on thereduced-power subframes 221. Namely, a first measurement M1′ is madewithin subframe “8” of a first frame 220 a. Likewise, second and thirdmeasurements M2′, M3′ are made within subframes “3” and “8” a secondradio frame 220 b, fourth and fifth measurements M4, M5 are made withinsubframes “3” and “8” a third radio frame 220 c, and so on. Once again,the measurements are periodic in that they each measurement is separatedby a constant offset of 5 msec, or 5 slots.

Each measurement is similarly reported on a different subframe,separated from the measurement subframe by a value of M_(Offset), offour subframes, or 4 msec. Thus, measurements R1′ and R2′ are reportedat subframes “2” and “7” of the second frame 220 b, measurements R3′ andR4′ are reported at subframes “2” and “7” of the third frame 220 c, andso on. A mobile communications device can be instructed or otherwiseadapted to make such periodic measurements by providing one or more ofthe measurement offset M_(Offset)′, the measurement period M_(Period)′and the reporting period R_(Period)′ of 5 slots, or 2.5 msec.

It is also possible that a mobile communications device be directed toperform an aperiodic channel quality assessment. In an example aperiodicmeasurement scenario 240, a measurement M1″ is performed in ameasurement subframe 224, in this instance, subframe “9” of the secondframe 220 b. The measurement M1″ is reported at R1″, occurring atsubframe 3 of the third frame 220 c, which also occurs at a timeR_(Offset)″ after the reference start of frame 224. Although each of themeasurements and corresponding reports occur in different slots, it isconceivable that in at least some instances a report is made during thesame slot within which the measurement is made, i.e., the value ofR_(Offset) is zero. In general, reference to instantaneous measurementsused herein includes any measurement that can be accomplished within asingle subframe.

It is understood that references to instantaneous measurements usedherein include single measurements performed within a subframe andmultiple measurements performed within the same subframe. Multiplemeasurements made within the same subframe may themselves be averaged orotherwise combined and reported as an instantaneous measurement for theparticular measurement subframe.

FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a base transceiver station300 of the communications system of FIG. 1. The base transceiver station300 includes a receiver and transmitter 302 and a communicationsprocessor 304. The communications processor 304 can be configuredaccording to one or more communications protocols, such as release 10 ofthe 3GPP LTE communications protocol. Accordingly, the communicationsprocessor 304 can format or otherwise structure communications messagesinto radio frames 200 (FIG. 2A) for forwarding to one or more wirelessdevices, such as the mobile communications devices 110, 112, 114 (FIG.1). The communications processor 304 can also format or otherwisestructure communications messages received from one or more wirelessdevices 110, 112, 114 for forwarding to other communications nodes, suchas other base transceiver stations within the same wirelesscommunications network, other wireless communications networks and otherterrestrial or satellite communications networks.

The receiver transmitter 302 can communicate with the communicationsprocessor 304 by way of baseband communications that can include one ormore of communications messages 320 and control messages 318. Fordownlink communications broadcast by the base transceiver station 300,the receiver transmitter 302 can translate such baseband messages 318,320 into radio frequency signals through any of various available signalprocessing techniques, and broadcast the radio messages through anantenna 316, for example by way of radio frames 200 (FIG. 2A) within acoverage region or cell 102, 106 (FIG. 1). For uplink communications,the receiver transmitter 302 can receive radio communications from oneor more mobile communications devices 110, 112, 114 and in someinstances, other base transceiver stations, 104, 108 by way of theantenna 316, translating the received radio signals to baseband signalsthrough any of various available signal processing techniques. Thebaseband signals 318, 320 can be provided to the communicationsprocessor 304 for interpretation or further processing includingdistribution to other network entities.

The base transceiver station 300 can also include one or morecontrollers 306. For example, the controller can be coupled to one ormore of the receiver transmitter 302 and the communications processor304. The base transceiver station 300 can also include one or morememory devices 308 coupled to or otherwise accessible by one or more ofthe controller 306, the receiver transmitter 302 and the communicationsprocessor 304. The memory can store instructions 310, for example, forone or more of the controller 306, the receiver transmitter 302 and thecommunications processor 304 supporting operation of one or more of thereceiver transmitter 302, the communications processor 304, and thecontroller 306 according to any of the various techniques disclosedherein.

In at least some embodiments, the memory 308 also stores records ofidentities of the mobile communications devices, sometimes referred toas user equipment, with which the base transceiver station 300 iscommunicating. Such identification information can include one or moreof a telephone number, a caller identification, and an equipment ordevice identifier. One or more of the communications processor 304 andthe controller 306 can be communicatively coupled with othernetwork-accessible entities, for example, through one or more of thebackhaul network 120 (FIG. 1) and some other network, such as acircuit-switched network or the Internet. When in possession of anidentifier of a particular mobile communications device 110, 112, 114,the communications processor 304 and the controller 306 can obtainadditional information about the particular device 110, 112, 114, suchas its make, model, features, capabilities and the like. Such additionalinformation can include whether a particular mobile communicationsdevice 110, 112, 114 is configured for operation with a particularprotocol, such as 3GPP LTE release 10, or some earlier release, such asrelease 8. Such additional information, such as user equipmentidentities 312, capabilities and the like can be stored, at leasttemporarily during an active communication session, within the memory308 and thereby accessible to one or more of the controller 306 and thecommunications processor 304. It is also conceivable that the memory canstore additional information, such as channel state information, e.g.,channel quality indicators 314.

FIG. 4A depicts an illustrative embodiment of a process 400 used by thecommunications system of FIG. 1. The process determines at 402 whether amobile communications device 112 is unable to distinguish betweenrelatively low-power frames, e.g., almost blank subframes (ABS) andrelatively high-power frames, e.g., non-reduced power or non-ABSsubframes. Such a determination can be obtained, for example, bydetermining an identity of the mobile communications device 112, whichcan include or otherwise be used to obtain features, capabilities of themobile communications device 112, for example, by accessing anassociation of identities and features or capabilities, such as adatabase or table as may be obtained by a mobile communications serviceprovider by way of normal operations.

Alternatively or in addition, the mobile communications device 112 canrespond to a query providing an indication as to whether the mobilecommunications device 112 is capable of distinguishing between ABSsubframes and non-ABS subframes. An example of a query response caninclude an indication of operating software and/or firmware of themobile communications device 112. For example, a mobile communicationsdevice 112 responding to such a query might indicate that it isoperating according to 3GPP LTE, Release 8 compliant software. It isgenerally known that Release 8 devices are generally incapable ofdistinguishing between ABS and non-ABS subframes; whereas, acommunications device 112 configured with Release 10 compliant softwarewould be.

Relatively low-power subframes can include subframes providing a reducedlevel of interference for operation within overlapping coverage regions,such as within the pico cell 106 which overlaps a portion of the macrocell 102. Low-power subframes can include almost blank subframes of acommunications protocol, such as 3GPP LTE, release 10, whereby downlinkcommunications within the macro cell 102 are temporarily reduced inpower level to provide opportunities for the overlapping pico cell 106to provide downlink communications to a mobile communications devicewithin the overlapping region of coverage. The relatively high-powersubframes include standard or non-reduced power subframes within which adownlink of a macro cell 102 operates without any intentional orotherwise pre-coordinated power restriction.

A first instruction is sent at 404 to the mobile communications device112 instructing the mobile communications device 112 to perform a firstchannel quality assessment of a non-reduced-power subframe. A secondinstruction is sent at 406 to the mobile communications device 112instructing the mobile communications device 112 to perform a secondchannel quality assessment of a relatively low-power, ABS subframe. Itis presumed that a device, such as one of the base transceiver stations104, 108 would have access as to which subframes 201 of the radio frame200 (FIG. 2A) are standard or non-reduced power subframes and which arereduced-power, ABS subframes. The particulars of such subframes 201 canbe predefined according to a predetermined arrangement of subframes,e.g., during an initialization phase, or by default. For example,certain subframes of each frame, such as subframes 2 and 7, can bedesignated as relatively low-power, reduced-power or almost blanksubframes. The base transceiver station 104, 108 can simply includewithin the instruction, one or more particular subframes, e.g., byreference number, or time reference, to ensure that the mobilecommunications device 112, even though unaware as to a characterizationof a particular subframe as one of a non-reduced power or an almostblank subframe, will report the first and second results according tothe proper subframes. For periodic measurements, the base transceiverstation 104, 108 can include within the instruction one or more of ameasurement period, a reporting offset R_(Offset), a reporting periodR_(Period), and a measurement offset M_(Offset) set as a number ofsubframes between a measurement and reporting of the measurement.

Channel quality assessments are received at 408 and a determination ismade at 410, as to whether the mobile communications device 112 isperforming the channel assessments according to an instantaneousmeasurement technique, e.g., measured within a single subframe, oraccording to an averaging technique, e.g., average of measurements madeacross more than one subframe. In some embodiments, the determinationincludes a comparison of the first and second channel qualityassessments. To the extent that a mobile communications or wirelessdevice is performing instantaneous measurements, any first channelquality assessments will be substantially different from any secondchannel quality assessments. This will result from the channel qualityassessment being performed in the presence of the interference, e.g.,from the macro cell 102 being included within the channel qualityassessment of a non-reduced power subframe, and not included within thechannel quality assessment of a reduced-power (almost blank) subframe.

The comparison can include computing an algebraic difference between thefirst and second channel quality assessments, resulting in a differencevalue. The difference value can be compared to a threshold value, suchthat instantaneous measurements can be concluded if the magnitude of thedifference is greater than the threshold value.

Likewise, to the extent that a mobile communications or wireless deviceis performing averaging measurements, each of the first and secondchannel quality assessments will very likely include contributions ofinterference from the macro cell. An algebraic difference between thefirst and second channel quality assessments, resulting in a differencevalue that is below the threshold value, would allow for a conclusionthat the averaging measurements are being made.

The comparison can also include a geometric or ratiometric value, asmight be obtained by forming a ratio between the first and secondchannel quality assessment values. To the extent that the ratio differsfrom one by greater than some threshold value, it can be concluded thatinstantaneous measurements are being made. Likewise, to the extent thatthe ratio differs from one by less than some threshold value, it can beconcluded that averaging measurements are being made by the mobilecommunications or wireless device. In some embodiments, the differencecan be defined by a percentage, e.g., 1%, 5%, 10% or more or a decibelvalue, e.g. 1 dB, 2 dB, 3 dB, or more.

For mobile communications devices 112 performing instantaneousmeasurements, the reported channel quality assessments can be reliedupon as being indicative of one of the non-reduced power subframes andthe almost blank subframes according to which subframe the mobilecommunications device 112 was instructed to make the measurement upon.Thus, the mobile communications device 112, despite being unaware as tothe availability or existence of almost blank subframes provided by animplementation of enhanced inter-cell interference cooperation, is ableto work in cooperation with a base transceiver station 104, 108 to enjoythe benefits of enhanced inter-cell interference cooperation.

Unfortunately, full implementation of enhanced inter-cell interferencecoordination will not be available for mobile communications devices 112for which it has been determined that averaging among cells has beenapplied in determining channel quality assessments. However, the mobilecommunications device 112 will continue to benefit from relativelylow-power subframes of the macro cell 102. Namely, the pico cell 106provides downlink communications to the mobile communications device 112during almost blank subframes. Thus the mobile communications device 112receives the downlink from the pico cell 106 with reduced interferencefrom the macro cell 102. The mobile communications device will continueto report channel quality assessment for the assigned subframes, e.g.,for almost blank subframes. However, the channel quality assessmentswill very likely over estimate the level of interference as the resultsare averaged across multiple subframes, which may include non-reducedpower subframes. Consequently, the pico cell 106 will establish a lowerbit rate than would otherwise be available because of the misleadingover prediction of interference.

To the extent that it is determined at 410 that the mobilecommunications device 112 is performing instantaneous measurements,operations proceed with enhanced inter-cell interference coordination412. According to enhanced inter-cell interference coordination, themobile device selectively updates channel quality assessments duringnon-reduced power, e.g., non-ABS subframes or during reduced power,e.g., ABS subframes.

Referring next to FIG. 4B, it is determined at 416 whether the mobiledevice performs channel quality assessments on ABS subframes or non-ABSsubframes. Such a determination can be established by one or more of thefirst and second channel quality assessments already made, or by furthermeasurements, or a combination of measurements already made and furthermeasurements. Since channel quality assessments already made have beenperformed on both ABS and non-ABS subframes, the results can be used todetermine whether operation on non-ABS subframes would be acceptable.For example, the pico base transceiver station 108 (FIG. 1) caninterpret the first and second channel quality assessment results anddetermine whether a suitable signal to noise and interference ratiocould be established during non-ABS subframes for the mobile device.Alternatively or in addition, additional measurements can be made tosupport a determination of whether measurements should be made on ABSsubframes or non-ABS subframes.

To the extent it is concluded that the signal to noise and interferencewould be acceptable for non-ABS subframes, the pico base transceiverstation 108 instructs the second mobile communications device 112 toperform further channel quality assessments on non-ABS subframes byassigning mobile device reporting of the channel quality assessments onnon-ABS subframes at 430. The pico base transceiver station 108 receivesnon-ABS subframe quality assessments from the mobile device 112 at 432.In some embodiments, it is determined whether there is non-ABSinterference at 434 (shown in phantom). Such a determination can be madeby the pico base transceiver station 108 interpreting, for example, thatthe signal to noise and interference is unacceptable in response tonon-ABS channel quality assessments received from the mobile device 112.To the extent non-ABS interference is determined at 434, the mobiledevice can be assigned to report channel quality assessment on ABSsubframes at 420, directing that subsequent channel quality assessmentsat 422 made by the mobile device occur on ABS subframes. Otherwise, themobile device 112 continues to report on channel quality assessmentsmade during non-ABS subframes, which are received at 432.

To the extent this is determined at 416 that the mobile device 112perform channel quality assessments on ABS subframes, the pico basetransceiver station 108 instructs the second mobile communicationsdevice 112 at 420 to perform further channel quality assessments on ABSsubframes by assigning mobile device reporting of the channel qualityassessments on non-ABS subframes. The pico base transceiver station 108receives ABS subframe quality assessments from the mobile device 122 at422.

In some embodiments, it is desirable to periodically check non-ABSchannel quality assessments at 424 (shown in phantom) to determinewhether it would be possible to reassign the mobile device to reportchannel quality assessments on non-ABS subframes. Whether non-ABSchannel quality assessments should be made can be determined accordingto one or more of a schedule and an event. To the extent that it is notdetermined to check non-ABS channel quality assessments at 424, the picobase transceiver station 108 continues to receive channel qualityassessments from the mobile device 112 made during ABS subframes at 422.Otherwise, the mobile device 122 is assigned to report channel qualityassessment on at least one non-ABS subframe at 426 (shown in phantom).

A determination is made at 428 (also shown in phantom) as to whetherinterference exists on the one or more non-ABS subframes. To the extentit is determined at 428 that the non-ABS channel quality assessments areunacceptable, e.g., that there is non-ABS interference, the mobiledevice 112 reverts to reporting on ABS subframes at 429 (shown inphantom). Reversion to ABS reporting can be accomplished by reassignmentof ABS measurement slots, for example, by the pico base transceiverstation 108, or without a need for reassignment, when the assignment at426 is aperiodic or one time only.

To the extent it is determined at 428 that the non-ABS channel qualityassessments are acceptable, no non-ABS interference, a reassignment ofthe mobile device reporting of channel quality assessment on non-ABSsubframes is made at 430. The channel quality assessments are receivedat 432. Accordingly, a mobile device can initially be instructed tomeasure channel quality assessments on one of ABS subframes or non-ABSsubframes, and subsequently redirected to perform future measurements onthe other. This allows for the pico base transceiver station to managechannel quality assessment reporting of devices 112 to minimize orotherwise limit operation on ABS subframes to those devices that requiresuch operation, e.g., devices at fringe regions of the pico cell 106.

By way of example, the second mobile communications device 112 (FIG. 1)is communicatively attached to the pico base transceiver station 108.After determining that the second mobile communications device 112 isunable to distinguish between ABS and non-ABS subframes, as in a 3GPPLTE Release 8 device, and that the device 112 is performinginstantaneous measurements, The device 112 is instructed as to when toperform channel quality assessments. Such instructions can be provided,for example, by the pico base transceiver station 108 and can direct thedevice 112 to perform measurements selectively on ABS subframes 223 ornon-ABS subframes 221 (FIG. 2B). Such measurements can be performedperiodically or aperiodically as disclosed herein.

It is generally desirable to minimize the number of reduced powersubframes as poses restrictions on the aggressor cell, e.g., the macrocell 102. To the extent that the second mobile device 112 is capable ofoperating without imposing or otherwise relying on reduced powersubframes, it should do so. For example, if the second communicationsdevice receives a strong downlink signal from the pico base transceiverstation 108, the signal to noise and interference observed duringchannel quality assessments made by the device 112 on non-reduced powersubframes may be sufficient for normal operation without having to relyon the reduced power subframes. Such results may occur for devices 112located within the pico cell 106 coverage, but not at the outer orfringe regions of coverage. For devices 112 located within such fringeregions, reliance on reduced power subframes may be necessary.Understanding that the devices 112 are mobile and that radio wavepropagation is subject to changes, for example, caused by environmentalconditions, it is desirable that devices 112 be operated in a mannerthat allows for transition in performing channel quality assessmentbetween reduced power subframes and non-reduced power subframes.

To the extent it is determined at 410 that the mobile communicationsdevice 112 is performing average measurements, operations proceedwithout enhanced inter-cell interference coordination at 414. Apico-connected mobile device, such as the mobile communications device112 (FIG. 1) can still be instructed as to one or more of when toperform channel quality assessments and when to report suchmeasurements. The downlink communications rate from the pico basetransceiver station 108 to the mobile communications device 112 is setto an intentionally low value. The low value can be establishedaccording to the channel quality assessments received by way of theaveraging measurements which overemphasize the impact of interferencefrom the macro cell 102. In at least some embodiments, the downlinkcommunications rate from the pico cell 106 to the mobile communicationsdevice 112 can be updated by a trial and error process. Communicate withmobile communications device 112 ensues according to the updatedcommunications rate.

FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a first communicationsystem 500 for delivering media content. The communication system 500can represent an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) media system.Communication system 500 can be overlaid or operably coupled with thecommunications system 100 (FIG. 1) providing enhanced interferencecoordination for an overlaid deployment of cells as anotherrepresentative embodiment of communication system 500. For example, abase transceiver station determines whether a mobile device 516 locatedan overlapping region of a macro cell 518 and a pico cell 522 is unableto distinguish almost blank subframes from non-reduced power subframesof a communications protocol. The base transceiver station 520, 524,able to distinguish between such subframes, sends instructions to themobile device 516 to perform a channel assessment on one of the almostblank subframes and one of the non-reduced power subframes. The basetransceiver station 520, 524 receives the channel assessment results,and distinguishes therefrom whether the mobile device 516 is using aninstantaneous process or an averaging process when performing thechannel assessments.

The IPTV media system can include a super head-end office (SHO) 510 withat least one super headend office server (SHS) 511 which receives mediacontent from satellite and/or terrestrial communication systems. In thepresent context, media content can represent, for example, audiocontent, moving image content such as 2D or 3D videos, video games,virtual reality content, still image content, and combinations thereof.The SHS server 511 can forward packets associated with the media contentto one or more video head-end servers (VHS) 514 via a network of videohead-end offices (VHO) 512 according to a multicast communicationprotocol.

The VHS 514 can distribute multimedia broadcast content via an accessnetwork 518 to commercial and/or residential buildings 502 housing agateway 504 (such as a residential or commercial gateway). The accessnetwork 518 can represent a group of digital subscriber line accessmultiplexers (DSLAMs) located in a central office or a service areainterface that provide broadband services over fiber optical links orcopper twisted pairs 519 to buildings 502. The gateway 504 can usecommunication technology to distribute broadcast signals to mediaprocessors 506 such as Set-Top Boxes (STBs) which in turn presentbroadcast channels to media devices 508 such as computers or televisionsets managed in some instances by a media controller 507 (such as aninfrared or RF remote controller).

The gateway 504, the media processors 506, and media devices 508 canutilize tethered communication technologies (such as coaxial, powerlineor phone line wiring) or can operate over a wireless access protocolsuch as Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), Bluetooth, Zigbee, or other present ornext generation local or personal area wireless network technologies. Byway of these interfaces, unicast communications can also be invokedbetween the media processors 506 and subsystems of the IPTV media systemfor services such as video-on-demand (VoD), browsing an electronicprogramming guide (EPG), or other infrastructure services.

A satellite broadcast television system 529 can be used in the mediasystem of FIG. 5. The satellite broadcast television system can beoverlaid, operably coupled with, or replace the IPTV system as anotherrepresentative embodiment of communication system 500. In thisembodiment, signals transmitted by a satellite 515 that include mediacontent can be received by a satellite dish receiver 531 coupled to thebuilding 502. Modulated signals received by the satellite dish receiver531 can be transferred to the media processors 506 for demodulating,decoding, encoding, and/or distributing broadcast channels to the mediadevices 508. The media processors 506 can be equipped with a broadbandport to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) network 532 to enableinteractive services such as VoD and EPG as described above.

In yet another embodiment, an analog or digital cable broadcastdistribution system such as cable TV system 533 can be overlaid,operably coupled with, or replace the IPTV system and/or the satelliteTV system as another representative embodiment of communication system500. In this embodiment, the cable TV system 533 can also provideInternet, telephony, and interactive media services.

The subject disclosure can apply to other present or next generationover-the-air and/or landline media content services system.

Some of the network elements of the IPTV media system can be coupled toone or more computing devices 530, a portion of which can operate as aweb server for providing web portal services over the ISP network 532 towireline media devices 508 or wireless communication devices 516.

Communication system 500 can also provide for all or a portion of thebase transceiver stations 520, 524 to perform a function related toenhanced inter-cell interference coordination (herein referred to asinterference coordination software functions or processes 562, 564). Theinterference coordination processes 562, 564 can use computing andcommunication technology to perform a function, which can include amongother features, identification of mobile communications devices 516(e.g., 3GPP LTE release 8) that are unable to distinguish almost blank,or otherwise relatively low-power subframes from non-reduced power, orotherwise relatively high-power subframes (e.g., 3GPP LTE release 10).The wireless communication devices 516 can be provisioned with softwarefunctions 562 that may or may not allow it to distinguish between thedifferent subframes.

Multiple forms of media services can be offered to media devices overlandline technologies such as those described above. Additionally, mediaservices can be offered to media devices by way of a wireless accessbase transceiver station 517 operating according to common wirelessaccess protocols such as Global System for Mobile or GSM, Code DivisionMultiple Access or CDMA, Time Division Multiple Access or TDMA,Universal Mobile Telecommunications or UMTS, World interoperability forMicrowave or WiMAX, Software Defined Radio or SDR, Long Term Evolutionor LTE, and so on. Other present and next generation wide area wirelessaccess network technologies can be used in one or more embodiments ofthe subject disclosure.

FIG. 6 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication system 600employing an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network architecture tofacilitate the combined services of circuit-switched and packet-switchedsystems. Communication system 600 can be overlaid or operably coupledwith the communications system 100 (FIG. 1) providing enhancedinterference coordination for an overlaid deployment of cells andcommunication system 500 as another representative embodiment ofcommunication system 600. For example, a base transceiver station 620,624 determines whether a mobile device 605 located an overlapping regionof a macro cell 618 and a pico cell 622 is unable to distinguish almostblank subframes 210 (FIGS. 2A-2B) from non-reduced power subframes of acommunications protocol. The base transceiver station 620, 624, able todistinguish between such subframes, sends instructions to the mobiledevice 605 to perform a channel assessment on one of the almost blanksubframes and one of the non-reduced power subframes. The basetransceiver station 620, 624 receives the channel assessment results,and distinguishes therefrom whether the mobile device 605 is using aninstantaneous process or an averaging process when performing thechannel assessments.

Communication system 600 can comprise a Home Subscriber Server (HSS)640, a tElephone NUmber Mapping (ENUM) server 630, and other networkelements of an IMS network 650. The IMS network 650 can establishcommunications between IMS-compliant communication devices (CDs) 601,602, Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) CDs 603, 605, andcombinations thereof by way of a Media Gateway Control Function (MGCF)620 coupled to a PSTN network 660. The MGCF 620 need not be used when acommunication session involves IMS CD to IMS CD communications. Acommunication session involving at least one PSTN CD may utilize theMGCF 620.

IMS CDs 601, 602 can register with the IMS network 650 by contacting aProxy Call Session Control Function (P-CSCF) which communicates with aninterrogating CSCF (I-CSCF), which in turn, communicates with a ServingCSCF (S-CSCF) to register the CDs with the HSS 640. To initiate acommunication session between CDs, an originating IMS CD 601 can submita Session Initiation Protocol (SIP INVITE) message to an originatingP-CSCF 604 which communicates with a corresponding originating S-CSCF606. The originating S-CSCF 606 can submit the SIP INVITE message to oneor more application servers (ASs) 617 that can provide a variety ofservices to IMS subscribers.

For example, the application servers 617 can be used to performoriginating call feature treatment functions on the calling party numberreceived by the originating S-CSCF 606 in the SIP INVITE message.Originating treatment functions can include determining whether thecalling party number has international calling services, call IDblocking, calling name blocking, 7-digit dialing, and/or is requestingspecial telephony features (e.g., *72 forward calls, *73 cancel callforwarding, *67 for caller ID blocking, and so on). Based on initialfilter criteria (iFCs) in a subscriber profile associated with a CD, oneor more application servers may be invoked to provide various calloriginating feature services.

Additionally, the originating S-CSCF 606 can submit queries to the ENUMsystem 630 to translate an E.164 telephone number in the SIP INVITEmessage to a SIP Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) if the terminatingcommunication device is IMS-compliant. The SIP URI can be used by anInterrogating CSCF (I-CSCF) 607 to submit a query to the HSS 640 toidentify a terminating S-CSCF 614 associated with a terminating IMS CDsuch as reference 602. Once identified, the I-CSCF 607 can submit theSIP INVITE message to the terminating S-CSCF 614. The terminating S-CSCF614 can then identify a terminating P-CSCF 616 associated with theterminating CD 602. The P-CSCF 616 may then signal the CD 602 toestablish Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) communication services,thereby enabling the calling and called parties to engage in voiceand/or data communications. Based on the iFCs in the subscriber profile,one or more application servers may be invoked to provide various callterminating feature services, such as call forwarding, do not disturb,music tones, simultaneous ringing, sequential ringing, etc.

In some instances the aforementioned communication process issymmetrical. Accordingly, the terms “originating” and “terminating” inFIG. 6 may be interchangeable. It is further noted that communicationsystem 600 can be adapted to support video conferencing. In addition,communication system 600 can be adapted to provide the IMS CDs 601, 602with the multimedia and Internet services of communication system 500 ofFIG. 5.

If the terminating communication device is instead a PSTN CD such as CD603 or CD 605 (in instances where the cellular phone only supportscircuit-switched voice communications), the ENUM system 630 can respondwith an unsuccessful address resolution which can cause the originatingS-CSCF 606 to forward the call to the MGCF 620 via a Breakout GatewayControl Function (BGCF) 619. The MGCF 620 can then initiate the call tothe terminating PSTN CD over the PSTN network 660 to enable the callingand called parties to engage in voice and/or data communications.

It is further appreciated that the CDs of FIG. 6 can operate as wirelineor wireless devices. For example, the CDs of FIG. 6 can becommunicatively coupled to a cellular base transceiver station 621, afemtocell, a WiFi router, a Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications(DECT) base unit, or another suitable wireless access unit to establishcommunications with the IMS network 650 of FIG. 6. The cellular accessbase transceiver station 621 can operate according to common wirelessaccess protocols such as GSM, CDMA, TDMA, UMTS, WiMax, SDR, LTE, and soon. Other present and next generation wireless network technologies canbe used by one or more embodiments of the subject disclosure.Accordingly, multiple wireline and wireless communication technologiescan be used by the CDs of FIG. 6.

Cellular phones supporting LTE can support packet-switched voice andpacket-switched data communications and thus may operate asIMS-compliant mobile devices. In this embodiment, the cellular basetransceiver station 621 may communicate directly with the IMS network650 as shown by the arrow connecting the cellular base transceiverstation 621 and the P-CSCF 616.

It is further understood that alternative forms of a CSCF can operate ina device, system, component, or other form of centralized or distributedhardware and/or software. Indeed, a respective CSCF may be embodied as arespective CSCF system having one or more computers or servers, eithercentralized or distributed, where each computer or server may beconfigured to perform or provide, in whole or in part, any method, step,or functionality described herein in accordance with a respective CSCF.Likewise, other functions, servers and computers described herein,including but not limited to, the HSS, the ENUM server, the BGCF, andthe MGCF, can be embodied in a respective system having one or morecomputers or servers, either centralized or distributed, where eachcomputer or server may be configured to perform or provide, in whole orin part, any method, step, or functionality described herein inaccordance with a respective function, server, or computer.

The base transceiver stations 620, 624 can perform processes 672, 674thereby provide enhanced inter-cell interference coordination servicesto the CD 605 of FIG. 6. CD 605, which can be adapted with software toperform function 676 to utilize the services of the base transceiverstations 620, 624 and otherwise adapted to the operations of the IMSnetwork 650.

For illustration purposes only, the terms S-CSCF, P-CSCF, I-CSCF, and soon, can be server devices, but may be referred to in the subjectdisclosure without the word “server.” It is also understood that anyform of a CSCF server can operate in a device, system, component, orother form of centralized or distributed hardware and software. It isfurther noted that these terms and other terms such as DIAMETER commandsare terms can include features, methodologies, and/or fields that may bedescribed in whole or in part by standards bodies such as ^(3rd)Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). It is further noted that some orall embodiments of the subject disclosure may in whole or in partmodify, supplement, or otherwise supersede final or proposed standardspublished and promulgated by 3GPP.

FIG. 7 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a web portal 702 which canbe hosted by server applications operating from the computing devices530 of the communication system 500 illustrated in FIG. 5. Communicationsystem 700 can be overlaid or operably coupled with system 100 (FIG. 1),communication system 500 (FIG. 5), and/or communication system 600 (FIG.6) as another representative embodiment of the communication system 100,the communication system 500, and/or communication system 600. The webportal 702 can be used for managing services of communication systems500-600. A web page of the web portal 702 can be accessed by a UniformResource Locator (URL) with an Internet browser such as Microsoft'sInternet Explorer™, Mozilla's Firefox™, Apple's Safari™, or Google'sChrome™ using an Internet-capable communication device such as thosedescribed in FIGS. 1-2. The web portal 702 can be configured, forexample, to access a media processor 506 and services managed therebysuch as a Digital Video Recorder (DVR), a Video on Demand (VoD) catalog,an Electronic Programming Guide (EPG), or a personal catalog (such aspersonal videos, pictures, audio recordings, etc.) stored at the mediaprocessor 506. The web portal 702 can also be used for provisioning IMSservices described earlier, provisioning Internet services, provisioningcellular phone services, and so on.

FIG. 8 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a mobile communicationsdevice 800. The mobile communications device 800 can serve in whole orin part as an illustrative embodiment of the devices depicted in FIGS. 1and 5-7. For example, in at least some embodiments, the mobilecommunications device 800 when located an overlapping region of a macrocell 102 and a pico cell 106 is unable to distinguish almost blanksubframes from non-reduced power subframes of a communications protocol.The mobile device 800 receives instructions from a base transceiverstation 104, 108 to perform a channel assessment on one of the almostblank subframes and one of the non-reduced power subframes. The mobilecommunications device sends the channel assessment results to the basetransceiver station 104, 108. The base transceiver station 104, 108,having determined whether the mobile communications device 800implements an instantaneous or averaging measurement, directs the mobilecommunications device 800 to receive downlink from the pico cell 106during one or more almost blank subframes of the macro cell 102. Themobile communications device 800 further communicates with the pico cell106 at a communication rate established by the pico base transceiverstation 108 in response to the aforementioned processes.

To enable these features, communication device 800 can comprise awireline and/or wireless transceiver 802 (herein transceiver 802), auser interface (UI) 804, a power supply 814, a location receiver 816, amotion sensor 818, an orientation sensor 820, and a controller 806 formanaging operations thereof. The transceiver 802 can support short-rangeor long-range wireless access technologies such as Bluetooth, ZigBee,WiFi, DECT, or cellular communication technologies, just to mention afew. Cellular technologies can include, for example, CDMA-1X,UMTS/HSDPA, GSM/GPRS, TDMA/EDGE, EV/DO, WiMAX, SDR, LTE, as well asother next generation wireless communication technologies as they arise.The transceiver 802 can also be adapted to support circuit-switchedwireline access technologies (such as PSTN), packet-switched wirelineaccess technologies (such as TCP/IP, VoIP, etc.), and combinationsthereof.

The UI 804 can include a depressible or touch-sensitive keypad 808 witha navigation mechanism such as a roller ball, a joystick, a mouse, or anavigation disk for manipulating operations of the communication device800. The keypad 808 can be an integral part of a housing assembly of thecommunication device 800 or an independent device operably coupledthereto by a tethered wireline interface (such as a USB cable) or awireless interface supporting for example Bluetooth. The keypad 808 canrepresent a numeric keypad commonly used by phones, and/or a QWERTYkeypad with alphanumeric keys. The UI 804 can further include a display810 such as monochrome or color LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), OLED(Organic Light Emitting Diode) or other suitable display technology forconveying images to an end user of the communication device 800. In anembodiment where the display 810 is touch-sensitive, a portion or all ofthe keypad 808 can be presented by way of the display 810 withnavigation features.

The display 810 can use touch screen technology to also serve as a userinterface for detecting user input. As a touch screen display, thecommunication device 800 can be adapted to present a user interface withgraphical user interface (GUI) elements that can be selected by a userwith a touch of a finger. The touch screen display 810 can be equippedwith capacitive, resistive or other forms of sensing technology todetect how much surface area of a user's finger has been placed on aportion of the touch screen display. This sensing information can beused to control the manipulation of the GUI elements or other functionsof the user interface. The display 810 can be an integral part of thehousing assembly of the communication device 500 or an independentdevice communicatively coupled thereto by a tethered wireline interface(such as a cable) or a wireless interface.

The UI 804 can also include an audio system 812 that utilizes audiotechnology for conveying low volume audio (such as audio heard inproximity of a human ear) and high volume audio (such as speakerphonefor hands free operation). The audio system 812 can further include amicrophone for receiving audible signals of an end user. The audiosystem 812 can also be used for voice recognition applications. The UI804 can further include an image sensor 813 such as a charged coupleddevice (CCD) camera for capturing still or moving images.

The power supply 814 can utilize common power management technologiessuch as replaceable and rechargeable batteries, supply regulationtechnologies, and/or charging system technologies for supplying energyto the components of the communication device 800 to facilitatelong-range or short-range portable applications. Alternatively, or incombination, the charging system can utilize external power sources suchas DC power supplied over a physical interface such as a USB port orother suitable tethering technologies.

The location receiver 816 can utilize location technology such as aglobal positioning system (GPS) receiver capable of assisted GPS foridentifying a location of the communication device 800 based on signalsgenerated by a constellation of GPS satellites, which can be used forfacilitating location services such as navigation. The motion sensor 818can utilize motion sensing technology such as an accelerometer, agyroscope, or other suitable motion sensing technology to detect motionof the communication device 800 in three-dimensional space. Theorientation sensor 820 can utilize orientation sensing technology suchas a magnetometer to detect the orientation of the communication device800 (north, south, west, and east, as well as combined orientations indegrees, minutes, or other suitable orientation metrics).

The communication device 800 can use the transceiver 802 to alsodetermine a proximity to a cellular, WiFi, Bluetooth, or other wirelessaccess points by sensing techniques such as utilizing a received signalstrength indicator (RSSI) and/or signal time of arrival (TOA) or time offlight (TOF) measurements. The controller 806 can utilize computingtechnologies such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP),programmable gate arrays, application specific integrated circuits,and/or a video processor with associated storage memory such as Flash,ROM, RAM, SRAM, DRAM or other storage technologies for executingcomputer instructions, controlling, and processing data supplied by theaforementioned components of the communication device 400.

Other components not shown in FIG. 8 can be used in one or moreembodiments of the subject disclosure. For instance, the communicationdevice 800 can include a reset button (not shown). The reset button canbe used to reset the controller 806 of the communication device 800. Inyet another embodiment, the communication device 800 can also include afactory default setting button positioned, for example, below a smallhole in a housing assembly of the communication device 800 to force thecommunication device 800 to re-establish factory settings. In thisembodiment, a user can use a protruding object such as a pen or paperclip tip to reach into the hole and depress the default setting button.The communication device 400 can also include a slot for adding orremoving an identity module such as a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM)card. SIM cards can be used for identifying subscriber services,executing programs, storing subscriber data, and so forth.

The communication device 800 as described herein can operate with moreor less of the circuit components shown in FIG. 8. These variantembodiments can be used in one or more embodiments of the subjectdisclosure.

The communication device 800 can be adapted to perform the functions ofthe media processor 506, the media devices 508, or the portablecommunication devices 516 of FIG. 5, as well as the IMS CDs 601-602 andPSTN CDs 603-605 of FIG. 6. It will be appreciated that thecommunication device 800 can also represent other devices that canoperate in communication systems 500-600 of FIGS. 5-6 such as a gamingconsole and a media player.

The communication device 800 shown in FIG. 8 or portions thereof canserve as a representation of one or more of the devices of thecommunication system 100 of FIG. 1, the communication system 500, andthe communication system 600. In addition, the controller 806 can beadapted in various embodiments to perform the functions 566 and 676,respectively.

Upon reviewing the aforementioned embodiments, it would be evident to anartisan with ordinary skill in the art that said embodiments can bemodified, reduced, or enhanced without departing from the scope of theclaims described below. For example, the processes can be used inrelation to interference between adjacent cells, such as adjacent macrocells 102 or adjacent pico or femto cells 106 to coordinate or otherwiseeliminate or reduce adjacent cell interference. Other embodiments can beused in the subject disclosure.

It should be understood that devices described in the exemplaryembodiments can be in communication with each other via various wirelessand/or wired methodologies. The methodologies can be links that aredescribed as coupled, connected and so forth, which can includeunidirectional and/or bidirectional communication over wireless pathsand/or wired paths that utilize one or more of various protocols ormethodologies, where the coupling and/or connection can be direct (e.g.,no intervening processing device) and/or indirect (e.g., an intermediaryprocessing device such as a router).

FIG. 9 depicts an exemplary diagrammatic representation of a machine inthe form of a computer system 900 within which a set of instructions,when executed, may cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethods describe above. One or more instances of the machine canoperate, for example, as the base transceiver station 104, 108, 300,520, 524, 672, 674, elements of the base transceiver station, such asthe controller, 308, the communications processor 304, and the receiverand transmitter 302, as well as one or more of the mobile communicationsdevices 110, 112, 114, 516, 605 and other devices of FIGS. 1-3 and 5-8.In some embodiments, the machine may be connected (e.g., using a network926) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine mayoperate in the capacity of a server or a client user machine inserver-client user network environment, or as a peer machine in apeer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment.

The machine may comprise a server computer, a client user computer, apersonal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a smart phone, a laptop computer, adesktop computer, a control system, a network router, switch or bridge,or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential orotherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. It will beunderstood that a communication device of the subject disclosureincludes broadly any electronic device that provides voice, video ordata communication. Further, while a single machine is illustrated, theterm “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machinesthat individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) ofinstructions to perform any one or more of the methods discussed herein.

The computer system 900 may include a processor (or controller) 902(e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU,or both), a main memory 904 and a static memory 906, which communicatewith each other via a bus 908. The computer system 900 may furtherinclude a display unit 910 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), a flatpanel, or a solid state display. The computer system 900 may include aninput device 912 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device 914 (e.g.,a mouse), a disk drive unit 916, a signal generation device 918 (e.g., aspeaker or remote control) and a network interface device 920. Indistributed environments, the embodiments described in the subjectdisclosure can be adapted to utilize multiple display units 910controlled by two or more computer systems 900. In this configuration,presentations described by the subject disclosure may in part be shownin a first of the display units 910, while the remaining portion ispresented in a second of the display units 910.

The disk drive unit 916 may include a tangible computer-readable storagemedium 922 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g.,software 924) embodying any one or more of the methods or functionsdescribed herein, including those methods illustrated above. Theinstructions 924 may also reside, completely or at least partially,within the main memory 904, the static memory 906, and/or within theprocessor 902 during execution thereof by the computer system 900. Themain memory 904 and the processor 902 also may constitute tangiblecomputer-readable storage media.

Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to,application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays andother hardware devices that can likewise be constructed to implement themethods described herein. Application specific integrated circuits andprogrammable logic array can use downloadable instructions for executingstate machines and/or circuit configurations to implement embodiments ofthe subject disclosure. Applications that may include the apparatus andsystems of various embodiments broadly include a variety of electronicand computer systems. Some embodiments implement functions in two ormore specific interconnected hardware modules or devices with relatedcontrol and data signals communicated between and through the modules,or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Thus, theexample system is applicable to software, firmware, and hardwareimplementations.

In accordance with various embodiments of the subject disclosure, themethods described herein are intended for operation as software programsrunning on a computer processor. Furthermore, software implementationscan include, but not limited to, distributed processing orcomponent/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or virtualmachine processing can also be constructed to implement the methodsdescribed herein.

While the tangible computer-readable storage medium 622 is shown in anexample embodiment to be a single medium, the term “tangiblecomputer-readable storage medium” should be taken to include a singlemedium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database,and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets ofinstructions. The term “tangible computer-readable storage medium” shallalso be taken to include any non-transitory medium that is capable ofstoring or encoding a set of instructions for execution by the machineand that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methods ofthe subject disclosure.

The term “tangible computer-readable storage medium” shall accordinglybe taken to include, but not be limited to: solid-state memories such asa memory card or other package that houses one or more read-only(non-volatile) memories, random access memories, or other re-writable(volatile) memories, a magneto-optical or optical medium such as a diskor tape, or other tangible media which can be used to store information.Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include any one or more ofa tangible computer-readable storage medium, as listed herein andincluding art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which thesoftware implementations herein are stored.

Although the present specification describes components and functionsimplemented in the embodiments with reference to particular standardsand protocols, the disclosure is not limited to such standards andprotocols. Each of the standards for Internet and other packet switchednetwork transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, HTTP) representexamples of the state of the art. Such standards are from time-to-timesuperseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having essentiallythe same functions. Wireless standards for device detection (e.g.,RFID), short-range communications (e.g., Bluetooth, WiFi, Zigbee), andlong-range communications (e.g., WiMAX, GSM, CDMA, LTE) can be used bycomputer system 900.

The illustrations of embodiments described herein are intended toprovide a general understanding of the structure of various embodiments,and they are not intended to serve as a complete description of all theelements and features of apparatus and systems that might make use ofthe structures described herein. Many other embodiments will be apparentto those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Otherembodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such that structuraland logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing fromthe scope of this disclosure. Figures are also merely representationaland may not be drawn to scale. Certain proportions thereof may beexaggerated, while others may be minimized. Accordingly, thespecification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative ratherthan a restrictive sense.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement calculated toachieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodimentsshown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations orvariations of various embodiments. Combinations of the aboveembodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein,can be used in the subject disclosure.

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided with the understanding thatit will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of theclaims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can beseen that various features are grouped together in a single embodimentfor the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method ofdisclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that theclaimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited ineach claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subjectmatter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment.Thus the following claims are hereby incorporated into the DetailedDescription, with each claim standing on its own as a separately claimedsubject matter.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method, comprising: providing, by a processingsystem comprising a processor, a first instruction to mobile userequipment to cause the mobile user equipment to perform a first channelquality assessment of a non-reduced power subframe of a wireless signal;providing, by the processing system, a second instruction to the mobileuser equipment to cause the mobile user equipment to perform a secondchannel quality assessment of an almost blank subframe; calculating, bythe processing system, a first difference value between the firstchannel quality assessment and the second channel quality assessment;and determining, by the processing system, that the mobile userequipment is performing instantaneous channel quality measurements basedon the first difference value exceeding a threshold value.
 2. The methodof claim 1, wherein the first instruction identifies the non-reducedpower subframe from among a plurality of non-reduced power subframes andthe second instruction identifies the almost blank subframe from among aplurality of almost blank subframes.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereinthe first difference value is expressed as one of a percentage and adecibel value.
 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending, bythe processing system and in response to determining that the mobileuser equipment is performing instantaneous measurements, furtherinstruction to the mobile user equipment to cause the mobile userequipment to perform subsequent channel quality assessments on aplurality of periodic measurement subframes.
 5. The method of claim 4,wherein the plurality of periodic measurement subframes are selectedfrom a group consisting of almost blank subframes of a plurality ofalmost blank subframes, and non-reduced power subframes of a pluralityof non-reduced power subframes.
 6. The method of claim 4, wherein thefurther instruction comprises: identifying, by the processing system, areporting offset of a first reporting subframe of a plurality ofperiodic reporting subframes, each reporting subframe of the pluralityof reporting subframes providing a channel quality assessment resultobtained during a respective measurement subframe of the plurality ofperiodic measurement subframes; and identifying, by the processingsystem, a reporting periodicity of the plurality of periodic reportingsubframes.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein each reporting subframe ofthe plurality of periodic reporting subframes is separated from therespective measurement subframe of the plurality of periodic measurementsubframes by a measurement offset, wherein the determining of thereporting offset comprises: identifying, by the processing system, afirst measurement subframe of the plurality of periodic measurementsubframes; determining, by the processing system, the first reportingsubframe by adding to the first measurement subframe the measurementoffset; and determining, by the processing system, the reporting offsetas a number of subframes occurring between a subframe reference and thefirst reporting subframe.
 8. The method of claim 4, further comprising:calculating, by the processing system, a second difference value betweenthe two of the subsequent channel quality assessments; and determining,by the processing system, that the mobile user equipment is performingaveraging channel quality measurements based on the second differencevalue not exceeding the threshold value.
 9. A device, comprising: aprocessing system including a processor; and a memory that storesexecutable instructions that, when executed by the processing system,facilitate performance of operations comprising: sending a firstinstruction to mobile user equipment to cause the mobile user equipmentto perform a first channel quality assessment of a non-reduced powersubframe of a wireless signal; sending a second instruction to themobile user equipment to cause the mobile user equipment to perform asecond channel quality assessment of an almost blank subframe; obtaininga first value based on the first channel quality assessment andobtaining a second value based on the second channel quality assessment;comparing the first value to the second value to compute a firstdifference value; and determining that the mobile user equipment isperforming instantaneous channel quality measurements based on the firstdifference value exceeding a threshold value.
 10. The device of claim 9,wherein the first instruction identifies the non-reduced power subframefrom among a plurality of non-reduced power subframes and the secondinstruction identifies the almost blank subframe from among a pluralityof almost blank subframes.
 11. The device of claim 9, wherein the firstdifference value is expressed as one of a percentage and a decibelvalue.
 12. The device of claim 9, wherein the operations furthercomprise further comprising sending and in response to determining thatthe mobile user equipment is performing instantaneous measurements,further instruction to the mobile user equipment to cause the mobileuser equipment to perform subsequent channel quality assessments on aplurality of periodic measurement subframes.
 13. The device of claim 12,wherein the plurality of periodic measurement subframes are selectedfrom a group consisting of almost blank subframes of a plurality ofalmost blank subframes, and non-reduced power subframes of a pluralityof non-reduced power subframes.
 14. The device of claim 12, whereinoperation comprise: identifying a reporting offset of a first reportingsubframe of a plurality of periodic reporting subframes, each reportingsubframe of the plurality of reporting subframes providing a channelquality assessment result obtained during a respective measurementsubframe of the plurality of periodic measurement subframes; andidentifying a reporting periodicity of the plurality of periodicreporting subframes.
 15. The device of claim 14, wherein each reportingsubframe of the plurality of periodic reporting subframes is separatedfrom the respective measurement subframe of the plurality of periodicmeasurement subframes by a measurement offset, wherein the determiningof the reporting offset comprises: identifying a first measurementsubframe of the plurality of periodic measurement subframes; determiningthe first reporting subframe by adding to the first measurement subframethe measurement offset; and determining the reporting offset as a numberof subframes occurring between a subframe reference and the firstreporting subframe.
 16. The device of claim 12, wherein the operationcomprise: calculating a second difference value between the two of thesubsequent quality assessments; and determining that the mobile userequipment is performing averaging channel quality measurements based onthe second difference value not exceeding the threshold value.
 17. Amachine-readable storage device, comprising executable instructionsthat, when executed by a processing system including a processor,facilitate performance of operations comprising: instructing a wirelessdevice to perform a first channel quality assessment of a non-reducedpower subframe of a wireless signal; instructing the wireless device toperform a second channel quality assessment of an almost blank subframe;calculating, by the processing system, a first difference value betweenthe first channel quality assessment and the second channel qualityassessment; determining, by the processing system, that the wirelessdevice is performing instantaneous channel quality measurements based onthe first difference value exceeding a threshold value; and instructingthe wireless device and in response to determining that the wirelessdevice is performing instantaneous measurements, further instructing thewireless device to cause the wireless device perform subsequent channelquality assessments on a plurality of periodic measurement subframes.18. The machine-readable storage device of claim 17, wherein theplurality of periodic measurement subframes are selected from a groupconsisting of almost blank subframes of a plurality of almost blanksubframes, and non-reduced power subframes of a plurality of non-reducedpower subframes.
 19. The machine-readable storage device of claim 17,wherein the operation comprise: calculating a second difference valuebetween the two of the subsequent quality assessments; and determiningthat the wireless device is performing averaging channel qualitymeasurements based on the second difference value not exceeding thethreshold value.
 20. The machine-readable storage device of claim 17,wherein the first difference value is expressed as one of a percentageand a decibel value.